Antidote
by AnHeiressofaSOLDIER
Summary: Fluff fic. BD missing moment. The Volturi try a subtle way to kill Bella, or remind Edward to change her. The two then decide to send them a message that they're engaged. The lovers comfort each other, and finally learn to treat each other as equals.


**Antidote**

Edward growled, and I instnctively moved closer to him. I'd had to deal with his anger and sadness more times than I wished to remember. It was for this reason that I knew he'd be a lot better off in my arms. I began walkng over to him with my hands palm forward. I could be placating. But before I could even blink, he was in front of me, and then pressing me against the wall so my shoulder leaned against the headboard I'd just come from. His knee was between my legs, and I was glad for it. Otherwise, I probably would have fallen a long time ago. His lips were pressed to my neck, and I blushed as I wondered if he was giving us what we both wanted.

The pleasure quickly turned to shock though as his teeth grazed my neck slightly and then pulled. It felt like he was removing a piece of scotch tape from my neck. And it looked like it too, except it was the color of my skin. I couldn't exactly tell what it was, though, before Edward's razor sharp teeth had decimated it. First, I stared at him wide-eyed, as he stepped away from me. And then I eyed the weird object on my hardwood floor. It was disolving! My eyes met Edward's again, and I choked out, "Venom?"

He nodded in a hard gesture. His liquid ocher eyes seemed to solidify, as he narrowed his eyes to slits. He looked at me as though he'd seen a ghost, and I finally put together what was making him act this way. "I just almost died again, didn't I?" He didn't answer me, and instead dug out his cell phone. I heard Alice on the other end, but then I couldn't hear anything. They were talking in hushed whispers that my human ears couldn't even dream of picking up. I slid into my bed, and was mortified to feel tears streaming down my eyes. I couldn't do this! Edward would probably be worse than I was. But I couldn't stop thinking how awful this death would have been. I wouldn't have even realized I was dying! If Edward hadn't noticed it, I probably would have died fast. This time there was nothing to fight but silent death, and this scared me more than anything else had.

Edward was by my side the instant he got off the phone with Alice. He brushed my hair behind my ear, and placed a kiss on the place where the object had been planted. It was the best thing he could have done because it brought me back to the here and now. It reminded me that I no longer had something lethal on me. I had evaded death. Again. More than that, Edward's lips reminded me that he was here with me. That gave me the strength to move forward more than anything. I turned around and smiled at him. I put his own hair behind his ear, but as it was too short and just fell away, I couldn't help but laugh. Edward still looked concerned. It meant we'd come a long way that he no longer questioned my inability to go into shock.

"Bella," he said in his soft, velvety voice that was as distracting as ever. I had to blink a few times before I understood what his hypnotizing lips were saying. "You had a poison put on you. It's designed to work quickly, but be passed to the target so they won't even know. That's why it looks like skin, and simply feels as though a skin tag. Do you remember anything out of the ordinary? Anytime the Volturi could have given this to you?"

"The Volturi!" I shrieked, as I shot up. I instantly sat back down, and mentally kicked myself in the head. After the whole Jacob fiasco, hadn't I promised myself that I'd put Edward's needs first? I needed to be calm and rational. And what had I expected, really? I clasped my hands with Edward's, as I saw his eyes darken and knew where his thoughts were taking him.

"It's quite genius, really. They knew I'd see it, of course, but it serves as a good reminder to change you in their eyes. And if I hadn't been around you when you got it, you would have died, but either way it would solve their problem." Edward's lips were pulled taut. And I knew from experience that his eyes were plotting murder.

I crawled onto his lap facing him so he'd be forced to look at me. I put my hands on either side of his face, and made him look at me. It served to show how upset he was that he complied easily. I held his hand in mine even tighter. "Edward, please don't go pick a fight with the Volturi. You know we can't win. And we shouldn't drag our family into this. I'll be like you soon anyway, so-"

"You make it sound like Caius or Jane wouldn't go off on there own and try to do this again!" He spat at me. I allowed it, and only curled around him tighter. I knew it wasn't me he was upset with. He was only concerned for my safety. If only my bad luck would stop involving the people I loved. Didn't it know it just wanted my misery?

Then again, Edward's misery was my misery. And as he would say in a short time from now, "Our lives are intertwined, and what's yours is mine." I laughed a little, and Edward looked at me like I was crazy.

As his eyes began to lighten with his curiosity, I knew it was only a matter of time before he said, "What's funny?" There it was. Proving me right. Edward leaned backwards on my bed so he was hanging off of it awkwardly, but I was still on it, as I was tucked into his chest. Clearly he'd been trying to get a better view of my face.

I sighed. There was no hiding anything from Edward. I always had been, and would probably contnue to be, his open book. "It just figures that death would make me less apprehensive about marriage."

And at once, the shadows left his face completely, as he sat up and smiled my favorite crooked smile. I, too, was forced to sit up when he did. "Really?" He asked cheerfully, as he cocked his head to the side.

I blushed and looked down, when I mumbled, "I guess so." 

Edward laughed jubiantly, and placed his index finger under my chin, and raised my face up. As he looked into my eyes with shining love, I was instantly ashamed that I'd hidden away from him with my admittance. Surely I owed him much more than that! And shouldn't I have learned to never hide from Edward? I didn't want him to do so with me, so I couldn't him. With a newfound confidence, I smirked. Rather cheekily, I said, "Yeah, well I wouldn't be arranging family game nights with Charlie, Phil, and Renée just yet. We still have a long while before-"

"Charlie!" Edward snarled. I looked at him perplexed, as he leaned forward and took my hand in his again. He shook it in desperation, and I looked at him for help. I knew what he was getting at, but I couldn't- "Bella, Alice didn't see the Volturi so they had to have gotten someone to bring the poison here. Who was it Bella? If the human didn't know, he could have gotten it on Charlie."

"Edward! What are we going to do with it? If I throw it away, and Charlie finds it-"

Edward shook his head at me with a smile, and I sighed in contentment when he placed a hand on my cheek. It was his trademark gesture. The first loving touch he'd ever given me. I couldn't help but lean into him. "My venom destroyed it, love. It won't hurt anyone else. We can simply throw it away. But please answer my question."

And how could I say no to that? He knew. How did he always know? Maybe if I spoke quietly, he just wouldn't hear me. "Mike stopped by to give us some cupcakes at the news of our engagement. That's the only out of place thing I can think of. Out of place only because they were burnt-"

Edward had gone stiff. And once again, I knew from experience that this was the worst reaction I could get from him. He was trying to remain in control, but it was clearly slipping from his grasp as he growled, "Newton. I'll kill him!"

I kissed him. It probably wasn't the best thing to do with an angry, unexpecting vampire. But I didn't know what else to do. I had to get his mind off Mike if at all possible. I knew it wasn't his fault that the Volturi had somehow contacted him and had unkowingly almost given me a death sentence. I wasn't even sure it was him, but-

Mmm, the feel of Edward's cold hands running along my spine was delicious. Boy was I glad I'd worn a short shirt today. It was hot for Forks. Edward's tongue dueled with mine for dominance in my mouth. And as he crushed me to him possessively, I wondered if he knew I'd been thinking about Mike, or if nearly losing me again was making him desperate. One hand of his had found its way to my leg. While it wasn't warm enough for shorts, it was for khakis. My hands, as always, were tangled in his hair. But since we'd been "practicing" my right hand had the tendency to wander to his abs. I had to wonder why the heck I'd stopped him that day in the meadow. Surely he wouldn't let things go much further.

I was wrong. His tongue danced over the place where the poison had been, and I was shocked that it hurt a little. The moment Edward became unresponsive against me, and stepped over to the wall opposite of us, I understood. He hadn't bitten me, but his grazing teeth had scratched me. He'd put just enough venom into the small amount of blood so I wouldn't turn, but the poison wouldn't kill me.

I ran a hand over the scar thoughtfully, and a small smile found its way onto my lips. Edward's teeth had come in contact with my skin, he'd even had a tiny bit of my blood from the scar he'd been forced to make, and he hadn't lost control once. More proof that my faith in my vampire was justified. I knew without a shadow of a doubt that he'd never kill me. Still, I didn't want him killing Mike, either. So I waited until he'd rejoined me on the bed, and smiled at me, before deciding, "We should tell the Volturi we're engaged. That way they'll know we're not ignoring their warning. It'll take them some time to decipher it, and by the time they've figured it out, I'll be a vampire like you."

"It's not a bad idea, actually." He leaned against me, and I enfolded him in my arms in shock.

When had I ever had to comfort Edward? Usually, it was me that needed the comforting. I hoped this meant that he was willing to let me take some of his burdens. Honestly, someone that preached to the high heavens that I was his equal and we should get married, should learn to confide in his partner more. I dropped a kiss to his forehead lovingly. "What's wrong, love?" I blushed at how easily his endearment for me fell from my own lips. And I saw then why he used it so much. Not even "love" could properly illustrate exactly what he meant to me, but it was the closest word there was. Of course I was his "love" and he was mine.

Edward chuckled a little at my sentence before his head fell to my heart and listened to my heartbeat. I thought I knew then what this was about. And his words, sending vibrations against my chest, proved me right. "I almost used their reason as an excuse today, Bella. I almost changed you."

My breath caught in my throat, and I wished I could take it back. I wished it wasn't so audible to Edward. He already thought he was failing in expressing his love. And despite how much I wanted to deny it, I still had doubts that he wanted to turn me. Hearing him say that... "Why didn't you?" I asked quickly to hide my faux paus. But it probably made it worse. We had had this compromise talk many times, after all.

"I've had enough contact with your jugular today. Don't tempt me, Bella." He joked darkly.

I just rolled my eyes, and lifted his face up to kiss his nose. I waited for him to tease me about _me _moving him away from my chest, but it never came. So I threaded my fingers through his hair, as he leaned his head on me again, and found myself filling the silence. "It's actually a turn on. Having you at my neck, knowing you have the power to keep me forever, but knowing how much you love me and fight against our desires..."

Edward laughed, and I bumped his knee with my own to remind him to look at me. He did so with my favorite crooked smile, and I remembered when I'd gone over to his house the first time. "_I was prepared to feel… relieved. Having you know about everything, not needing to keep secrets from you. But I didn't expect to feel more than that. I like it. It makes me… happy."  
><em> 

I wondered if that was how he felt now. It seemed to be the case when he was able to joke, "You know I'll probably drain you dry then, right? I do have both our long fought desires to think of."

"You're unbelievable."

"And you're stealing my lines."

His eyes locked onto mine, and I was frozen in their depth, but it seemed he was melting into the sea of mine. How could two people so different exist so easily together? How could we be so perfect together? Overwhelmed by the moment, I felt hot tears streaming down my face. Like the time I'd gone over to his house, he licked them away, and smiled at me amused. Perhaps he was daring me to question him. Once again, I wouldn't. "Can we just stay like this forever?" I asked him. "Just you and me in our own little world?"

"The Sculptor Amore knew no light. The fires flamed and thought the artists be damned. But nevermore had Amore seen the beauty of light, than from the fair one who adjoined with the hand." Edward traced the tear streaks on my face, and I found myself adjoining my hand with his own. His eyes shone into mine, as if asking me whether or not I thought he wrote that for me. And it was clear in the pride, love, and meaning in his voice that he had.

"If your names's Amore, then what's mine?" I asked him, as I quickly poked one of his fingers into my mouth and sucked on it. He looked at me curiously and laughed a little, but, hey, if he got to taste my salty tears, then shouldn't I at least get to taste his salty hands? He had just written a poem about _my_ hands, after all.

However, Edward hadn't once broken his perfect articulation, and he wasn't going to now. "What makes you think you're not Amore? You'll be facing the fires of hell soon enough. And haven't we realized our roles are always reversed? Like how you'll make sure we're always like this, because you'll keep me bedded."

"What happened to my turn of the century gentleman?"

"He was seduced by love. The war gave him strength, a calling like the night in us each. But he never lasted the length until he found his reason to be."

I giggled at that. And pulled him close. I feigned a kiss, but just as his lips had touched mine for a mere second, I pulled away. I shoved his shoulder playfully when I saw the little, sad look on his face."You and your sappy poetry," I chided. I placed my finger where we had just barely kissed. It reminded me of when Jake and I had brushed lips before Edward called as "Carlisle". Jacob and I weren't supposed to kiss. We weren't supposed to be anything remotely like that. When Edward had called, he had saved me from myself. It had led to things being set right. A kiss, even as harmfless as all that, was meant only for him. And I smiled my own secret smile in realizing I finally had my soul mate back. I had him inescapably, and I always would.

"Says the girl who finds a sappy love story in Wuthering Heights," Edward said without missing a beat. I would have cursed him for his fast vampire mind, but it was for that reason I'd fallen in love with him. Only he could keep up with me mentally. Only we could have playful banter like this. He understood me and complimented me in a way no one else could. That was why I needed to become a vampire. I had a vampire mind to begin with, changing me would just give me added bonuses. And, possibly, the ability to actually beat him in a debate. Thankfully, I'd learned to somewhat be immune to his dazzling.

"If I'm Amore, then I should be Heathcliff, and you Cathy." I told Edward with my own smug look on my face. I would have loved to be Mr. Darcy. I didn't really see much greatness in myself in Lizzie Bennet. But Edward had won the monopoly on that in hackling me to marry him. He and his flirtatious strategies. I knew what he'd done! To get me to truly understand what a hard choice it had been for him to agree to change me, he'd asked me something equally hard for me to consent to. At least, if nothing else, we were proving how much we loved each other in overcoming our greatest fears to be together.

"Are you out for someone's blood then, love?''

Oh, he was perfect. Very, very perfect. But he was an actor. He looked all innocent and questionable, but I knew better. He would not win this time. He'd stolen Darcy, but I would have Heathcliff. I had a way to combat what he'd said. "Yours!" I exclaimed the last bit, as I tackled him backwards and rested myself on his chest again. Though he had to move so we could be in this new position, he still laughed. My actions, at least, were a surprise to him. Even if his strength kept me from surprising him that way.

"We're going to be a symbiote, aren't we?" Edward asked, as he placed a kiss to my cheek. He then did so in my ear. As his perfect, chilly lips brushed my ear it was very hard to concentrate. I thought he was talking in French, perhaps?

"We already are, aren't we?" I asked this, as I deftly pulled away from his persuasive lips. In the end, I'd moved far enough so he somehow ended up kissing the end of my arm. It was still very sweet though. And I was reminded of a time, his time, when he might have kissed me on the hand in public meetings.

"Touché." Edward seemed to read my mind, as he whispered this against the back of my hand. I smiled sillily as I had a ridiculous vision. Surely Alice would have laughed at me if she could have seen it, but history and trends repeated themselves. If we were going to live forever, who was to say there wouldn't be another time with petticoats and ball gowns? I wouldn't rule out this courting daydream just yet. If nothing else, maybe Edward and I could have some costumed dates. Such a thing would make my vampire very happy, I knew. And such a thing made him seem even more like one. To see him dressed up in other centuries' clothing... it was worthy of giddiness. Even more so in knowing I would soon be able to join him in forever.

"She couldn't exist without a song. Lost in the valley of the night. But she saw him sailing with the way he walked, and she found it was never the ground she was with." Edward, blinked for a moment. Apparently he'd thought I'd been a distracted human, and therefore would think I'd lost the moment to retaliate. I tried my best not to scowl.

"Now you're stealing from Les Misérables," Edward said as he figured out the bizarre workings of my mind. He chuckled at me in glee while, also, seeming impressed I knew that performance. That was an insult if there ever was one.

Accordingly, I attacked him in the best way I could. We'd see how distracted he could get. Especially since I hitched my leg around his hip. "No, the only thing I'm interested in is stealing your clothes."

"What did I say? Do I know you or what?" Edward laughed unperturbed. I noticed that he didn't remove my leg.

And as I was reminded of all the other times I'd tried to be with him in such away, when I realized how far we'd come, I was lost in my love for him. He that resisted my blood, body, and soul because he loved me so much. He that loved me even more to shove away his own predetrmined notions to give me everything I wanted. "Edward, do you love me?"

"I've had to have propose to you fifty times by now, what do you think?" In a lightning fast movement, he spun us around so he was on top of me, and looking me in the face. His gaze was intense. I knew he was trying to decipher my own intensity, but _I _didn't really understand it. The words had just tumbled out of my mouth. So did something else: the knowledge that I would get rid of my fears of marraige to make him happy. I owed him that and so much more. I owed him me and my love for him forever. I knew that I'd probably still get freaked when the big day got closer, but not because of him. Never because of him. On the contrary, I would try to be happy for him.

"Well, will you marry me fifty times, make love to me fifty times, hold me fifty times, remind me of this moment fifty times..." Once again, the words came out of a deeper place in my heart. I knew this all to a tee, but I had to be certain. I had to believe. Had to believe that the Volturi wouldn't destroy me before we got everything we wanted. Because it was all worth it. And if Edward could protect me, I wouldn't regret a day of it. Not our squabbles after he'd saved me from the van, not the empty way I'd lived without him, and certainly not what all we'd done to each other because of Jacob. Instead, it would all be a part of the bigger story. Our story. I knew it would make it all more meaningful, and that's how it was supposed to be.

"No, Bella. Much, much more. And I'll protect you fifty times, but I'll protect you from heartache first, and therefore not myself."

Before I could say anymore, Edward pressed his lips to mine. And I smiled into it. I knew that Edward was thinking about the literary masterpieces in this kiss. And I was, too. We were Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, Romeo and Juliet, Heathcliff and Cathy. We were them and so much more. And the kiss made right of our love more than anything else had. "I love you, Edward," I said when my lips were free. "You're my anecdote," I said accordinly, as I stroked his face. He was an anecdote because whenever I read such things anymore, there'd never be a moment where he didn't appear in my mind. When our story didn't make itself known in similar scenes.

"And you're my antidote," Edward said, as he mirrored me by stroking my own cheek. The one opposite the one I was touching on him. He seemed to want to kiss me again, but something stopped him. "Charlie's coming. I'll see you in a moment, my sweet angel. My summer girl. My prescripton, my addiction, my antidote."

I crinkled my face, and looked at him skeptically, as he tried to situate himself into my closet. "You didn't write that, did you?"

"No, but you ingrained it on my heart."

And I had to bite my lip to keep myself from singing to the angels. I was so full of joy. Of love. Of understanding! Even then, I simply said, "Better than your mind, I suppose."

I didn't fool, Edward. Even in my offhand answer, he'd seen I'd been as positively effected on this day as he had. So he picked up his poetry again, and I could have sworn I heard a choir of angels' harps in the background. "The mind can grow, it can know. It can feel, it can expel, but it is the heart that knows when you're real. We're real, Bella."

"Edward, look after my heart. I've left it with you." And even when there was only a small glimmer of light showing his face, as the closet door closed, I could see his smile as clear as day. Like the moon rising after the sun, mine did the same thing. The dawn broke across my face, and I smiled.

**Author's Note: First off, ignore the poison thing. It was just something I saw in the first season of Chuck. And somehow I got inspired to use that in an Edward/Bella story. I probably got it wrong, as I haven't seen that epi in years, but it doesn't matter. It was just something to set up this fluff fic. In fact, such a poison might not even exist in the real world.**

**Also, I hate the stupid poems I wrote. But we know how Edward likes to quote things. And I thought that it would be cute if he wrote things for her (and Bella wrote one for him), but I think I failed epically. Even so, if you want to know what any of them mean, feel free to ask.**

**Technically, Jake and Bella didn't kiss in NM. But I went with the movie version when I had Edward and Bella brush lips in this. It was too perfect to pass up Bella contemplating it.**

**And the Darcy/Edward comparison in this, besides obvious reasons, is because of the New Moon commentary. I think one of the special effects guys was saying Edward was acting all Mr. Darcy like in his proposal, and I can see that. Like, he genuinely wanted her to marry him, but he was also playing with her. He knew he was about to play the trump card.**

**And when Edward asks Bella if she's out for someone's blood, it's about Eclipse. How Edward started feeling something for Wuthering Heights when he read how Heathcliff wouldn't hurt Edgar because of Catherine's feelings for him, but if her regard for him ever ceased, he would happily drink his blood. Of course, Bella turns Edward's words around to be a vampire reference, which she'll soon be.**

**Bella's vision is a reference to the New Moon movie. I always hated Alice's vision of Edward and Bella. But Chris Weitz said something that makes me think it might have been Bella's thought. Mainly that to get away from Bella's PoV in that movie, they used things she knew was happening so we could see them, but allowed it to seem like it was her imagining how it would go. Or something like that. So maybe the romantic, classic Bella thought that's what Alice's vision would be like. Gosh, I hope so. Gosh, I hope we don't see them in those ridiculous outfits in BD. But, yeah, that part I wrote is a nod to that idea.**

**LOL. Rob saying Edward has proposed to Bella about fifty times or whatever.**

**Another quote from this is from The Swan Princess. The part about "Much. Much more." Odette had asked Darek if he'd love her until the day they died, and he says, "No. Much, much longer" or something like that. And Summer Girl is a reference to the song Sam writes Grace in Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater (look up the beautiful Jonas & Plunkett version on YouTube). And then the song, Better Than Drugs by Skillet. **

**As you know, Bella's last line is Bella quoting something Edward said to her. And it was only right I got "Breaking Dawn" mentioned in here. I wrote this since that's coming out, and it works since this is right before BD takes place.**

**I think this is my official unofficial last Twilight fic. I mainly wrote this to see if I could still write Edward/Bella, but I probably won't write more unless the plot bunnies attack. Though I might post some of my older stories for them that I never released.**

**So, yeah, I hope you enjoyed this. I loved writing all of their playful banter. I miss that in the movies. That was what I loved about them. They could play off each other so well. And they were so intellegent, they could just go on tangents about famous works. I miss seeing that light side of them. That was Edward and Bella. That was how they flirted.**

**Shutting up now. Though please forgive any mistakes. I don't have Microsoft Word at the moment, so I can't see my typos. And though I've looked for them many times, I probably missed stuff.**

**Actually, if someone wants to beta this so I can put it on Twilighted, I'd be much obliged.**


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